Mmmm SO Good!

Ryan likes tomatoes.

The first time Ryan tasted a tomato, he made a face likened to the one his father makes upon tasting one. Pure distaste at it's best.

But I persisted. Each time we were near the cherry tomato plant outside I would eat one and let out loud exclamations of enjoyment "MMMM SO good!" Then I would offer one to him. Finally, one day, he again sampled a tomato. At first, he made that face of disgust, but then it turned into interest. Like the lightbulb suddenly went on and he realized that it might actually taste decent. Good, even.

And upon making this discovery, he started to hunt tomatoes for himself. Looking around the plant he found another small, round piece of fruit. It was green, and he threw it in his mouth before I could stop him. Even this did not daunt him from enjoying the tomatoes. We had a lesson on the difference between red and green - and I watched as he picked off all of the red tomatoes and popped them into his mouth. When they were gone, instead of walking away, he pointed his little finger at a green tomato and let out a loud sigh...and then exclaimed "RED!" and picked it.

Since that first day, everytime we go outside he runs over to the tomato plant. Shortly after, he will walk toward us, seeds dripping from his chin, his arm outstretched and a green or red tomato in hand wanting to share his bounty.

It tickles me because Phil's least favorite food is the tomato. He will eat the sauce or the salsa but a fresh tomato might as well be rotten if you were to decipher his look of disgust. But when Ryan offers a tomato, he knows that as a dad, he must take, eat, and pretend to enjoy if he wants to have a son who is not picky.

This is an enjoyable turn of events for me, as when we first started dating I was the one with the food phobias. My favorite meal was spaghetti with butter and cheese, and peas on the side. I just couldn't understand why he didn't want to eat that all the time. He started expanding my tastes. I found out that most vegetables are really pretty good, and that it's ok to use spices. He has a stomach of steel and can eat just about anything with a straight face and an open mind. (To illustrate my point further, one time at a mexican restaurant he actually ordered SOUP. Turns out, the soup was a nice broth with some vegetables and cow stomach. Or brain. We weren't sure. And he actually ate it.)

So, now here we are, and he is the squeamish one. Don't get me wrong, I still have a list of many "no-no's" when it comes to food, but my list is expanding. It has gotten to the point where my family really believes an imposter may have taken my place. A broccoli loving imposter. And while my husband enjoys my newfound tastebuds (it makes his own dining a bit more tasty) he has still not been able to move past this dlislike. And it's important to him, because he is a firm believer that when a kid sees you turn up your nose at food, they, too, will start to dislike foods. So, he takes the tomato from Ryan, says "Thank you, Ryan!" and pops it in his mouth. What a good dad!